WHAT a surprise to find Owen Jones on the pages of The National! But like most of the London lefty commentariat he doesn’t understand Scottish politics. His crude characterisations of left and right are not applicable outside the London bubble and not among London’s workers, where Mick Lynch and his comrades have the measure of the action.

In his article, Owen gives the game away islandimmediately: “For anyone on this island with a progressive disposition.” Well, that dispenses with Scotland’s hundred-plus inhabited islands, not to speak of Orkney and Shetland, Northern Ireland, the Scillies, Isle of Man and so on. Throughout his article he continues to use the descriptor “the island” and I’m not sure if this is because he wishes to depict the United Kingdom as a single entity (a favoured position of the London left) or because he is just not sure how to describe it.

READ MORE: Owen Jones: Kate Forbes could yet shape Scottish nationalism in her image

Kate Forbes has her roots in Scotland’s ancient island culture and heritage and often in the leadership campaign spoke of her personal views and acknowledged that she is a democrat who respects democratic decisions. As Joanna Cherry KC MP noted in a companion article, “Ash [Regan] and Kate between them won 48% of the membership vote despite having the forces of the membership machine and establishment lined up against them. It is crass to see this as having been a battle between left and right.”

Most Marxists examining the Scottish political situation would agree that Scotland has had a longstanding people-centred radical tradition with elements of conservatism and pragmatism. All societies are made up of intermingling strands influenced by the dominance by the current hegemony in different historical periods.

As an active political person of Scottish Irish origin, I am very cautious about commenting about the current political debates about Ireland. Why? Although I am from that cultural/historical background I did not grow up within it and am deeply concious of my own ignorance about its rich and diverse history.

If Owen wishes to add positively to the current debates about Scotland (and we need that badly from the London left), he could do no better than to read Professor Alf Baird’s book called Doun-Hauden (Scots for oppressed). This is a Marxist analysis of Scottish colonisation – a marvellous and timely piece of work.

Maggie Chetty
Glasgow

I’VE read and enjoyed reading articles by Owen Jones on many occasions and was pleased to see his feature in my National on Friday morning. News of the “collapse” of the SNP south of the Border has obviously been of interest. The Labour Party associate strongly with this “collapse” and are hopeful of restoring some of their support in Scotland which has mostly disappeared in recent years.

For what it’s worth I would say to him to not count his chickens regarding a resurgence of Labour. Things are not good with Sunak but Keir Starmer is not the answer.

READ MORE: Stephen Kerr refuses to deny Tory-Labour tactical voting plans

Owen says: “If Kate Forbes, who is instinctively against LGBTQ rights and abortions, had triumphed, it would have been hailed as a victory for social reactionaries across the Western world.” What a sad place we’ve reached in our history when a person like Kate Forbes, a member of the approximately 95% group of the population who is not LGBTQ, but who states that she can reach across the fraught divisions caused by gender reform and compromise, tolerate and accept a democratic decision, cannot be found acceptable.

For my money her maturity, intelligence, toleration and honesty are extremely rare and should be held in the highest regard.

RG Clark
Gorebridge

TIME and time again we hear the English government telling Scotland we are better together because it knows best. Westminster can always afford to say this because it carries its ridiculous Tory government majority by way of its undemocratic national voting system.

However, I can’t help wondering that its latest claim to national (and even international) fame is its very loud report on its apparent green energy claim. Setting aside the Tory need for more nuclear power stations, Rishi Sunak has stated that his government will be responsible for the UK “leading the world” in green energy.

Not only is is he several years behind the times, but we read in Friday’s National that he is still bent on allowing oil from the Equinor’s Rosebank oil and gas field to be produced. I understand the continued need for oil as in the manufacture of other products. But surely there is sufficient oil currently available to service other manufacturing?

I also note the fact that, once again, Scotland is leading the way with its own green energy supplies. Our increased onshore wind generated 9.8% more energy in 2021 than in 2020. This was enough energy to provide energy for all households for three-and-a-half years. Even the first quarter of last year did better than previous quarterly figures.

READ MORE: Scotland generated record level of renewable electricity in 2022

The claims of Rishi Sunak that the UK leads the world has to be based on and inclusive of Scotland’s green energy performance. Sunak also boasts about the use of carbon capture and hydrogen power, both of which have been in Scotland’s capabilities, but sadly with the former being cancelled out through “better together” Westminster failing to provide capital funding.

These political statements coming from the Tory government are unacceptable and must be countered by our new Holyrood government. Even our opposition parties must recognise these Westminster discrepancies concerning Scotland’s green energy provision and should dare to say so.

Alan Magnus-Bennett
Fife